Week 5 - UPC0004

Lecture:

In this weeks lecture we went through using search engines to a university standard. We were told that there are basically three catagories of information on the web:

1. Free visible web,


2. Free invisible web,


3. Paid databases over the web.

In the lecture we were told thatsearch engines are a web based aplication that looks through teh internet, creating indecies for websites. We were also mada aware of the two main catagories of search engines:

1. Search engines


2. Directories

Examples of such include:

• http://www.google.com/


• http://www.yahoo.com/


• http://www.altavista.com/


• http://www.alltheweb.com/

We were also made aware of the problems with using search engines when researching information:

• Results are vast


• Results are too broard


• Alot of the information is invalid due to the "ranking" system.

As well as being introduced to search engines we were introduced to online directories. Online directories are human edited, meaning that they are reviewed and added by through manual subscription. And prior to being published on the internet, directories are proof read and edited by a seperate being. This makes online directories a lot more trust worthy taht search engines.

Examples of directories include:

• http://dmoz.org/


• http://directory.google.com/


• http://dir.yahoo.com/


• http://www.looksmart.com/


• http://www.about.com/

Tutorial:

Task 1:

This weeks tutorial was all abvout using the web to find reliable and trustworthy information. We were asked to visit http://www.monash.com/spidap.html and find four useful search techniques:

1. Search using directories as they are human edited and managed, they are also updated more frequently


2. Refine the search, excluding certain words


3. Use "quotation" marks aoround key words


4. Only use key words when searching, so as to exclude common words such as "and, or, but, the..."

Task 2:

In our tutorial we were asked to put our information gathering skills to the test, using online directries we had been given in the lecture, topartake in an online quiz:

http://www.siteseen.co.uk/questions/historytrivia/

Stratagies I used to complete the online quiz:

• Used two directories - http://directory.google.com/ and http://dir.yahoo.com/


• Only used keywords, such as "Albert Einstein"


• Used symbolys to refine my search "Albert Einstein + birth date"


• Used inverted commas "&" to further refine my search.

Through this weeks tutorial I have learnt how to better and more efficiently search for information on the internet. Without having learnt what I have, I would still be using basic and inaccurate searching meathods. Using these techniques will help me throughout my university career.

Extra Reading:

In this weeks extra reading we were asked to read about internet search tips from:

http://www.virtualsalt.com/howlook.htm

This website explores how we as students should approach searching for information on the internet. Such as "how can I find what I want?" and "how can I know that what I find is any good?" As well as offering tips on how to effectively search the internet, including:

• Using keyword searches - This search will find any pages containing any of the words you have specified.


• Using phrase searches - pages with only the words you have specified in that particular order with no words inbetween them.


• Using boolean operators - using "and, or, not and occasionally near" to expand or contract search.


• Using several searching tools - due to constant indexing, some will find material that others wont.


• Read the search tips or help informationat each search engine - you will learn how to perform more sophisticated searches.


• Use several words - refines search.


• Guess a location - the URL of a website is often guessable.


• Think about what you want - facts, opinions etc...


• Back up to find where you are - look at the address to find out where abouts you are in the website itself.

We were also asked to visit:

http://www.let.leidenuniv.nl/history/ivh/chap4.htm

This website took us through:

• The begining of the internet - 1990 first search engine capable of finding and retrieving computer files.


• How to find information on the internet - various stratagies on finding valid information quickly and efficiently.


• Directories - are lists of site chosen by human-beings.
  
• Search engines - comparable to the indexes of books.


• Databases - system set up to find online journal articles.


• Library catalogues - best way of finding printed information, used to locate books, journals and working papers.

Our third extra reading task was on "search engine optimisation" the reprot goes through keyword analysis, setting your benchmark, search engine optimisaton itself, link popularity and measuring your progress. All of these points make researching information easier as they effect the way websites and the search engines themselves are constructed.

The last piece of extra reading we were asked to read was about websites with a guide. The website suggested was a mobile phone website, promoting a phone service that gave you any information you desired (within reason). Information such as where the nearest pet store is from your particular location. This website has a guide as to how to use the service itself as well as how to use the website.